Church membership has dropped sharply in the last 20 years

Handmaid for Jesus · Dec 14, 2019

THE W said:
if these people truly hungered for the True and Living God they would leave the hypocritical churches and establish solid biblical churches or at the very least find more solid biblical churches. that's not happening. they're dumping 'chistianity' altogether and going their own way.

Every church denomination claim to be the "true" church.

. Lord Jesus as Savior is not being presented as He really is. People will say He is the Savior, but add a lot of pluses and legalism to Him.

S.O.J.I.A. · Dec 14, 2019

bekkilyn said:
If the hypocritical churches are the only "Christianity" they have ever known, then what you're suggesting is an unrealistic expectation barring a "Paul on the road to Damascus" moment. If their hearts are sincerely seeking him, then God will know and recognize it regardless of where they are seeking him.

but that's the point.

this church exodus is the result of those who have never had a "Paul on the road to Damascus" moment AKA have truly been saved. they were just a bunch of "cultural Xtians" who went to church "cuz reezins" and once society lessoned the social stigma of not being apart of these religious institutions they all hit the door.

again, don't go to those hypocritical churches, find solid churches or establish your own. however, they were never truly converted so they're not interested in that.

Mountainmanbob · Dec 14, 2019

Pope66 said:
A new survey by Gallup finds that membership in religious congregations is plummeting. Only half (50%) of the public report that they are a member of a house of worship — church, synagogue or mosque. This represents a precipitous decline over the past few years. In 2013, just five years earlier, nearly six in ten (59%) Americans said they were a member of a religious congregation. The drop marks the first time in the history of Gallup’s polling, which stretches back to 1938, that fewer than a majority of the public reported belonging to a religious congregation.The decline of church membership | American Enterprise Institute - AEI %
That decline has not surprised me anymore. I believe the reasons for this is the hypocrisy within the church walls, the bigotry, and as well as the unchrist like behaviour of Church leaders plus it not longer seen as being part of the greater good in society.

But for many of them that leave they have not chosen to abandon the faith. They believe in God but dont belief in priests and/or pastors.

Maybe God is calling less people these days?

Seems many more follow the world?
Their flesh?
Or the devil?

Or the laws of the land now days
tell us that just about everything is a go
please yourself
as long as you don't hurt others.

And then the devil tells many
their good works will surely get them in
if there is such a place as heaven.

I know that I'm better than my neighbor.
According to that I get in.

M-Bob

Not David · Dec 14, 2019

It is because of lack of community and increase of an individualistic faith. When my sister and I went to a Baptist Church we liked it because of the Youth group and the friendliness of the people. When I went to college I went to Church a couple of times but I got annoyed by the sentimental music and I went to a House Group but I got annoyed by the simple messages, sharing feelings and more sentimental music (even though the people were nice). Next I went to an United Methodist Church but I was still lacking community and even I went to the contemporary one because of a girl I had a crush on. Later on I decided to go to an Orthodox Church and it was great! I believed in the teaching and I hanged up with people of my same age.

Unfortunately my situation took me out of there.

bekkilyn · Dec 14, 2019

THE W said:
but that's the point.

this church exodus is the result of those who have never had a "Paul on the road to Damascus" moment AKA have truly been saved. they were just a bunch of "cultural Xtians" who went to church "cuz reezins" and once society lessoned the social stigma of not being apart of these religious institutions they all hit the door.

again, don't go to those hypocritical churches, find solid churches or establish your own. however, they were never truly converted so they're not interested in that.

When I think of "cultural Christians" I think of people who have no real interest in God at all, and if they even go to church in the first place, are typically just using it as a social club or to elevate their status in society in some way.

People who truly hunger for God, as many do, but yet cannot find him in the church are a different group of people. I don't believe that God would ever reject someone who sincerely seeks him, even if they go about it the "wrong" way according to some religious institution.

timothyu · Dec 14, 2019

Perhaps people are just plain too busy selling their souls to governments of man than to sell it to some church. God loses out either way.

S.O.J.I.A. · Dec 14, 2019

bekkilyn said:
People who truly hunger for God, as many do

prove it

bekkilyn said:
I don't believe that God would ever reject someone who sincerely seeks him, even if they go about it the "wrong" way according to some religious institution.

so your position would be that the person who fully practices mythraism who would reject the gospel of Christ but claim they are truly seeking God is saved because they are sincere?

bekkilyn · Dec 14, 2019

THE W said:
prove it

The proof is all around you, in all the "spiritual but not religious" and because of the fact that God made us for his good pleasure. It is natural for us to desire him, to hunger for him, to yearn for him.

so your position would be that the person who fully practices mythraism who would reject the gospel of Christ but claim they are truly seeking God is saved because he's sincere?

Not because the person *claims* they are truly seeking God, but if God looks into that person's heart and sees that they are indeed sincerely seeking him, then I believe that God will recognize it.

Not to mention that in our hypothetical scenario, we are speaking of people who rejected the church, which is not at all the same as rejecting the gospel of Christ.

Speedwell · Dec 14, 2019

chevyontheriver said:
I think the prurient preoccupation with sex by church leaders is a meme that isn't totally accurate. But as a meme it has a lot of power.

I give you the post I responded to as an example.

S.O.J.I.A. · Dec 14, 2019

bekkilyn said:
The proof is all around you

right,

the massive idolatry going on AKA "spirituality". the type of stuff the LORD punished nations(including His beloved Israel) for doing and accused of playing the harlot. that's your proof.

mmmkay...

bekkilyn said:
Not because the person *claims* they are truly seeking God, but if God looks into that person's heart and sees that they are indeed sincerely seeking him, then I believe that God will recognize it.

and the fuits of that sincerity are the rejection of the gospel and fully subscribing to a pegan religion.

as you wish...

bekkilyn · Dec 14, 2019

THE W said:
right,

the massive idolatry going on AKA "spirituality". the type of stuff the LORD punished nations(including His beloved Israel) for doing and accused of playing the harlot. that's your proof.

mmmkay...

and the fuits of that sincerity are the rejection of the gospel and fully subscribing to a pegan religion.

as you wish...

So your claim is that you know their hearts more than God?

S.O.J.I.A. · Dec 14, 2019

bekkilyn said:
So your claim is that you know their hearts more than God?

my claim is that i'll know them by their fruits as the scripture says(matthew 7:15-20)

be good buddy..

bekkilyn · Dec 14, 2019

THE W said:
my claim is that i'll know them by their fruits as the scripture says(matthew 7:15-20)

be good buddy..

And considering that you have even in this thread already judged and condemned all of those people without ever knowing them as God knows them, it is no wonder the churches are declining if this is the prevailing attitude.

Hazelelponi · Dec 14, 2019

Speedwell said:
You appear to believe that the prurient preoccupation of church leaders with sex as opposed to more important moral issues has nothing to do with the decline in church membership.

sex and murder are moral issues..

FireDragon76 · Dec 14, 2019

THE W said:
what you're describing is idolatry. man wanting a god made in their own image.

that's just romans 1 being played out in real life.

So? Monotheism is just as much idolatry, then.

At least non-Christians, SBNR, Buddhists, etc., I know seem to not cause trouble for their neighbors and seem to be devoted to alot of good things that benefit others.

Pope66 · Dec 14, 2019

bekkilyn said:
I'm not sure I agree that people have been looking for a reason to walk away from the church, at least not actively seeking. People have such a huge yearning and hunger for God in their lives, even if they call him by some other name or even less personal such as "the Universe" or what have you. People want that relationship, they want to dig deep, and so when they can't seem to find it in "the church" (along with all the politics and the hypocrisy you mentioned) they will seek for it elsewhere. But that craving hunger is there. The church just really hasn't given them much reason to come back.

You are right the craving hunger is there, yet they have not found it in Church, and because of that they don't bother coming back.

Pope66 · Dec 14, 2019

bekkilyn said:
I'm not sure I agree that people have been looking for a reason to walk away from the church, at least not actively seeking. People have such a huge yearning and hunger for God in their lives, even if they call him by some other name or even less personal such as "the Universe" or what have you. People want that relationship, they want to dig deep, and so when they can't seem to find it in "the church" (along with all the politics and the hypocrisy you mentioned) they will seek for it elsewhere. But that craving hunger is there. The church just really hasn't given them much reason to come back.

You are right the craving hunger is there, yet they have not found it in Church, and because of that they don't bother coming back.

Speedwell · Dec 14, 2019

Hazelelponi said:
sex and murder are moral issues..

Sex, and the profile agenda to control the sex lives of women are moral issues, yes. Are they the only moral issues?

S.O.J.I.A. · Dec 14, 2019

FireDragon76 said:
So? Monotheism is just as much idolatry, then.

At least non-Christians, SBNR, Buddhists, etc., I know seem to not cause trouble for their neighbors and seem to be devoted to alot of good things that benefit others.

cool story bro..

Hazelelponi · Dec 14, 2019

Speedwell said:
Sex, and the profile agenda to control the sex lives of women are moral issues, yes. Are they the only moral issues?

No, and I rarely hear about either in church - although the sin of gossiping has made it recently to the church sign out front..

Most pastors you'll find, should one actually attend church, don't usually focus on sins that don't affect their particular church so much..

Church membership has dropped sharply in the last 20 years

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